


YOURS

by KatesSweetEscape



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Suspense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-14
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2019-10-10 04:37:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17419208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatesSweetEscape/pseuds/KatesSweetEscape
Summary: It's been two years since you'd left "The Clan". Two years since you started a new life, casting aside your family, friends and the power your dark crown held. Until one day a simple phone call drags you back into the world you'd left behind and forces you to face the man you had never been able to forget.





	1. Prologue

Deafening silence.

It swallowed you whole as you were sitting on the edge of your bed. You desperately tried to focus on anything but the stillness. Footsteps. Mumbling. Hell, you’d be even grateful for the sound of people screaming out in agony. Because if you didn’t find something else to focus on but this all-consuming silence you’d lose your goddamn mind. Or break down into tears. And you couldn’t afford either.

You needed to be focused. Ready. And most definitely you needed to be out the door and on the run.

But you couldn’t. Your body didn’t allow you to move. Not even a bloody inch. Instead, you were still sitting there. Right at the very edge of your bed where you’d been sitting for the past thirty minutes.

Motionless. Quiet. And in so much pain that it made you almost unable to breathe.

But you needed to go through with this. You needed to save yourself. Or at least what would be left of you once you went through that damn door. So you took a deep breath. And another one. As if you were doing it for the first time. Slowly. Taking in as much oxygen as you possibly could with each shaky breath. Until you got used to the sharp pain that was ripping your heart into tiny little pieces.

You ran your fingers through your hair and looked towards the white bedroom door. You could hear the muffled voices of the guards who were quietly talking to one another in the hallway. Probably to keep themselves awake in the dead of night while the rest of the estate was fast asleep. You couldn’t make out what they were talking about. Presumably about sports. Maybe even about their significant others. Maybe they were talking about the problems they had or the struggles they went through. Or they were actually talking about when to make the next round to ensure the leading family’s safety.

You should be focussing on their words. You should be formulating a plan how you’d be able to get to the great staircase and down into the entrance hall without them wreaking havoc. And this would only be the first of the many more troubles waiting for you. You’d have to get out of the estate and into the garage to get to your car, sneaking past all the guards along your long way from your bedroom and towards your car. You’d have to get out of the garage and down the long road that lead straight to the huge gates that were protecting your childhood home from the rest of the outside world. And all that without being caught.

Which was damn near impossible. But you needed to try.

Because you couldn’t stay here. You couldn’t stay in this place that was slowly but steadily killing any humanity left inside of you. Where organizing illegal cage fights and dealing drugs was as normal as breaking bones or even killing. It was the world you’d been born into as daughter to the leader of what people simply called “The Clan”.

You were the princess. The crown jewel. The blood diamond.

But your older brother Hyunwoo was the new king.

And it started to change him.

When your father had died almost two years ago you’d still hoped that things would change. That the days of excruciating cruelty and pointless bloodshed were finally over. Because your big brother had been a kind soul. Well, at least for the heir of South Korea’s biggest syndicate.

Hyunwoo had always preferred diplomacy over brute force. Or so you’d thought. Until he’d killed an innocent witness. Right in front of your eyes. He didn’t even flinch when he’d pulled the trigger, staring the man straight in the eyes before putting a bullet into his head.

That’s when you’d known that you’d have to go. That you had to leave it all behind if you didn’t want to turn into a monster that didn’t care about the countless lives it was ripping apart on its blood trailed way to the top. But you’d put it all off over and over again. Waiting. Hoping. But things had gotten worse over the last four months since Hyunwoo had killed his first victim as the new head of family. And now you couldn’t postpone this any longer.

You let out a deep sigh and turned your glance back towards the bed. Leaving wasn’t easy. Not at all. And there was a simple reason for that. And that reason was soundly asleep right next to you, only inches away from where you were sitting.

Hoseok was lying on his back, right in the middle of the king size bed, his right arm extended towards the side you were usually sleeping on. The sheets underneath were messy and his skin was still slightly glistening with sweat. His silver hair was softly glowing in the dim light of the bedside lamp and his long lashes were casting shadows onto his cheeks. The blanket was covering him up to his hips and his exposed chest was rising and falling with his calm and steady breath. His skin was naturally pale. Almost like the fur of the snow white rabbit you’d had owned as a child. Countless tattoos were decorating his skin, making it look like the canvas of a talented artist who’d immortalized his art beneath Hoseok’s skin.

You still remembered when he’d gotten his first one. The black X right over his heart. His reward for surviving the initiation and a symbol of being part of The Clan.

You’d been an eleven-year-old brat. He’d been a lost and angry fourteen-year-old boy.

Hard to believe that it had been ten years since he’d gotten his first tattoo in your clan’s most trusted tattoo studio. He’d been sitting on the stool right next to Hyunwoo, casually chatting away while the tattoo artist was doing his handy work. You’d held onto your brother’s hand, squeezing it tightly. You’d been completely terrified of the needles scratching your beloved brother’s skin, making him bleed and grunt in pain. Him. Your indestructible brother. And just when you’d thought that you’d burst into tears, bringing shame to the family through turning into a sobbing mess, Hoseok had reassured you with a kind smile on his face, not showing his pain to a terrified little girl that had hated the sounds of the tattoo machine. But over the years you’d gotten used to it, accompanying him to every appointment at the tattoo studio and even getting one or two works of art yourself.

You knew the story to every tattoo and every scar on his body. Which was probably a given considering the fact that you’d been his lover and best friend for the past seven years.

He’d first kissed you on your fourteenth birthday. When you’d asked him for it after heavily crushing on him for years. It had been a short and chaste kiss. A peck really. But that had started it all. After that, the two of you had often snuck out to meet in secret in the pantry of the kitchen. Sometimes you’d talked for hours. Sometimes you hadn’t talked at all.

By the time you’d turned sixteen, Hoseok finally had the courage to tell your father about it. That night he’d lost his first fight to Hyunwoo. And you’d lost your virginity to him in your family’s nurse’s office after mending his wounds yourself.

A few weeks after your eighteenth birthday, when Hoseok had almost been killed in one of your father’s pointless vendettas against another clan, he’d asked you to marry him. And you’d said yes, planning this grand future with him now that your family had finally accepted him as worthy of you.

And now, at age twenty one you were about to leave him. Just two months before your wedding. And while you were still as madly in love with him as you’d been from the day you’d first seen him all those years ago when your father had brought him in, an orphan boy of barely twelve years with no past and no future.

You stretched out your hand and tried to ignore the big diamond on your ring finger that was sparkling in the soft light as you brushed back a strand of Hoseok’s hair.

You loved him. More than you could ever love yourself.

But you couldn’t keep doing this. You had to leave. And you knew that he’d never leave with you. He’d been raised to be your brother’s right-hand man. His loyal attack dog and servant. The Clan was the only family he’d ever known. And you couldn’t take that away from him. Not now. Not ever.

So you had to leave him behind and keep his memory deeply hidden within you. As a secret that you’d take to your grave. And this secret would enable you to keep going. Wherever you might end up. Because your years with him had been the happiest of your life. And that was something nobody could ever take away from you.

Hot tears welled up in your eyes as you leaned down to place a soft kiss on his plush lips. You felt his warmth and the cold metal of his lip ring that was slightly digging into your own sensitive skin. You’d despised that piercing when he’d first gotten it. But strangely enough, you’d grown to love it throughout the many kisses he’d stolen from you over the years.

Now you couldn’t even remember what it had felt like kissing him without feeling the cold piercing pressing against your skin while tasting the faint aroma of metal on your tongue. It was something you’d always remember about him. Just like you’d remember him coldly staring down your enemies with those brown eyes of his that turned soft and warm as soon as the two of you were alone. There were so many things you wouldn’t be able to forget about Hoseok.

Because he was deeply engraved into you. His smell. His voice. His touch. All of him had become a part of you. Completing you in a way you’d never thought possible.

But now you had to rip it all out. Even though it was rooted deeply in your heart. It would leave you broken, bleeding and half dead. But you had to do it. Even though you weren’t sure if you were able to survive it.

You lifted your head and your fingers traced the lines of the tattoo Hoseok had along the side of his neck. He’d gotten it shortly after you’d accepted his proposal. The letters were slightly curved and rather delicate. Not something people would expect to see on a buff and broad-shouldered guy like him.

Yours.

That one simple word made your heart ache and you could almost feel your own matching tattoo burning scars into your flesh. It hurt. More than you could ever make anybody understand.

Because he was yours. And you were his.

Yet, you had to leave him to stay the person he’d fallen in love with. To stay who you really were. And to be true to yourself.

So even though it hurt like hell, you got up from the edge of the bed, walked over towards the door and went through it with nothing more than just a small bag and tons of memories.

You left the ring on the bedside table. With your heart. Your love. And even your name.

And you never looked back.

_to be continued…_


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been two years since you've left everything behind. But a simple phone call brings you right back to everything you've been trying to forget.

“You know that he’s looking at you again, right?”

You let out a long sigh and stopped playing with your food that you hadn’t really touched for the last five minutes. Instead you focused on your only and therefore best friend Yoo Kihyun. He was sitting on the edge of your desk, cross-legged as if the whole twentieth floor belonged to him. Which was definitely not the case since his own office was located on the eighth floor. But your best friend had always been extremely self confident. Or he just had a huge ego. Whatever one preferred. 

“Ki - Just ignore him.”

“I can’t. He just keeps looking over to us. He might think he’s sneaky with looking down at his papers but he sure as hell isn’t. And his gaze is just…” Kihyun frowned, apparently at a loss for words, which was quite understandable, since the behaviour of your boss was anything but professional. “Does he do that every day?”

You spared a glance towards the desk that was standing opposite yours. Changkyun’s secretary, Bae Soojeon, was talking to somebody on the phone, her fingers hammering down on the keyboard as she made full use of her headset. She seemed preoccupied. But you knew better than that. She was like your company’s very own tabloid. If she overheard anything that she considered juicy gossip, the whole company would know about it in no time. So you never talked about anything personal in front of that woman. And your relationship to your boss definitely was one of those things. So you didn’t say a word. But apparently staying silent was enough of an answer for Kihyun. 

“Are you for real?” His eyes widened and he leaned down towards you, lowering his voice as he kept on talking. “God, how do you even get anything done with him looking at you like this?”

You shook your head in annoyance before putting the lid back onto your salad. So much for your peaceful lunch break.

“I ignore him and just do my job.” You already regretted telling Kihyun when you’d be having lunch and asking him to tag along. But unfortunately you still didn’t really fancy eating alone. “And I’m gonna start ignoring you too if you don’t stop talking about our boss.” You shoved him back a little but Kihyun seemed completely unfazed by it and leaned in again, his nose now almost touching yours. You could already imagine all the chatter being spread by Soojeon because of this. It would take three days to be completely blown out of proportion. By tomorrow you’d be dating Kihyun. By Thursday you’d be pregnant. And by Friday you were probably planning on eloping.

God. You hated that sort of stuff.  

“Sorry, Y/F/N it’s just… It’s oddly distracting even for me.” Kihyun glanced towards the glass front of Changkyun’s office. You boss was sitting at his desk, his eyes seemingly looking at the papers in his hand. But only a few seconds later he lifted his gaze and was looking at you again. When your eyes met, he smiled a little before refocusing on his work.

You immediately noticed the dark shadows under his eyes and that he was wearing the same suit he’d worn yesterday. Which meant he’d spent another night at the office. When you’d brought him his coffee this morning he’d seemed tired. But now - a few hours later - he looked completely exhausted.

Kihyun cleared his throat and shifted his attention back to you, a faint blush spreading on his cheeks. “Really, really distracting. And I am straight.”

You cocked up your eyebrow, pressing your lips together to avoid laughing. “Are you sure about that?”

“Bite me.” Kihyun scoffed before scooting in even closer. God, that guy really didn’t get the whole concept of personal space. Which was probably the reason why he even managed to become your friend just shortly after entering the company. He never got discouraged by your cold and aversive nature. He just kept on trying, ending your solitude with that sassy and slightly annoying nature of his.

“So,” You already knew trouble was headed your way when a sly smile tugged at the edge of Kihyun’s lips. “You never thought about hitting it off with him? It’s obvious that he is interested.”

Your eyes widened a little. “Ki, he’s my boss.”

“And it’s the 21st century.” Kihyun simply shrugged, as if dating a CEO wasn’t a big deal. “Nobody cares about stuff like that anymore.”

That was a big fat lie. And you both knew it. Because people would always care about ridiculous bullsh*t like that. So you shook your head no. Almost violently. You lowered your voice, practically whispering by now to avoid Soojeon listening in. “I don’t want people talking about me. Or him. So no. I’ve never thought about dating him. Also – ” You hesitated, struggling to come up with a believable lie why Changkyun wasn’t dating material apart from him being your boss – “I don’t date guys my age.”

“I see.” Kihyun nodded, patting you on the shoulder in empathy. “So you were also raised in a conservative family then?”

For a second you were back in your teenage days, where you had to attend countless debutante balls and celebrations for arranged marriages. Where dating was forbidden and where you having a “lower-class” boyfriend was considered a huge scandal. Funny how the darkest depths of Seoul’s underworld were so outdated. Other memories started to resurface like the taste of rain, the sound of muffled laughter and the warmth of a body pressed closely against yours. And your bodyguard’s loud screams of anger when he’d found you and … him … sneaking in through the backdoor in the middle of the night. 

You cast those memories aside just as fast as they had surfaced. They were too painful. And since the second anniversary of that dreadful night was drawing close you weren’t strong enough to face any of them without breaking down in tears. 

“Don’t even get me started.”

“Ms. Lee?” Kihyun almost jumped off your table when the deep and raspy voice of Changkyun was suddenly coming from the intercom. “I need your help.”

You pressed the little button and leaned in towards the speaker, lowering your voice to make it sound soft and calm. “I’ll be right there, Sir.”

You let go of the button and got up from your seat, straightening your dress and rearranging your jewelry. You tried to ignore Kihyun’s stare as best as you possibly could before throwing away your empty can of diet coke.

“Of course he does.” Kihyun sneered as he got up from the table. “God, he’s being painfully obvious.”

“Helping him is my job.” You said, suddenly feeling the need to defend your boss. “I am his personal assistant after all.”

Kihyun grinned and as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively you already knew he was going to spout nonsense again. “I bet he wants you to assist him on an even more personal level.”

Your cheeks flushed with heat but you tried to play it cool by rolling your eyes and pushing Kihyun towards the elevator. “God - Get lost.”

Kihyun clutched his chest dramatically while slowly walking backwards. “You know, I don’t seem like it but I do have feelings.”

You laughed a little, your fingers already touching the cold metal of the doorknob. “I highly doubt that.” You flashed Kihyun one last smile and waved goodbye as he stepped into the elevator. “See you later, Ki.”

“See you later, Y/F/N.”

As soon as the doors of the elevator closed you opened the glass door to Changkyun’s office. It was still beyond you how one person needed such a large space just to himself, but apparently that was some sort of CEO thing you’d never be able to understand. 

“You called for me, CEO Im?”

“Yeah I did.” Changkyun got up from his seat behind the desk that had been placed in front of the huge glass front that allowed a spectacular view over the bay. “Please, close the door behind you.”

You stepped into his office, the soft cotton white of the walls and the warm brown of the wooden floor immediately calmed you down. “What can I do for you, Sir?” You softly closed the door behind you, finally shutting out Soojeon’s voice who was still on the phone.

Changkyun’s face was stern and his lips, that often showcased a rather smug smile, were pressed together in a thin line. The dark circles under his eyes made his skin look even more pale then it actually was. His slightly messy hair currently had a bluish-grey color which had cost him a fortune and countless of hours at the hairdresser but accentuated his dark eyes perfectly, making them look like they were pitch-black instead of dark brown. He looked a little bit older than you, but actually the two of you were only a few months apart. But that was only natural, considering the stress he was under.

“I need your help.” Changkyun walked over towards you, unbuttoning his suit coat which had a rather classic cut. “Oh and, by the way – ” Changkyun averted your eyes as he came closer, looking slightly displeased “-was that Yoo Kihyun from the marketing department? He visits you at your desk fairly often these days. Are you two a thing?”

You tried your hardest not to laugh. Kihyun was right. Changkyun really was being painfully obvious. “I thought you only needed my help, Sir.”

“The door is closed, Y/F/N.” Changkyun sounded a little annoyed and you tried your best to keep a straight face. “So drop the whole Sir bullsh*t and tell me honestly - are you two a thing?”

Honestly, this wasn’t even worth answering. But the way Changkyun looked at you let you know that your answer was meaningful to him. So you walked over to him, lifting your hands to rearrange his pocket square. You needed to keep yourself occupied with something as you started talking with that calm and unfazed voice of yours. “What are you gonna do if we are?” 

“I don’t know.” Changkyun’s unique laugh filled the office but today it didn’t sound as cheerful as it usually did. “Maybe I should fire him. To lower the competition, you know?” 

You stopped your little task and looked Changkyun straight in the eyes. Even though he wasn’t particularly tall only a few people dared to because of how rich and privileged he was as the very young CEO of a huge pharmaceutical company. But you had been raised to stare down people that were more powerful than him. And far more dangerous. So you weren’t afraid. “Don’t say stuff like that.” 

“Why? You don’t like it? Does it make me look like an idiot?”

“Kind of. Because if you’re serious about this you’d be a bloody fool.” You straightened his jacket, tucking at it a little stronger than necessary. “Ever since he joined the company, sales have dramatically increased. And by the way - these days women don’t like guys who abuse their power just to flirt with somebody.” You smiled as you heard him gasp in fake shock. “But also, no. We aren’t dating. We’re just friends.” Changkyun’s sudden and bright smile was almost contagious but you didn’t allow yourself to join in. This was stupid. “Kihyun isn’t really my type.”

You took a step back, and crossed your arms over your chest as you watched that smile of his widen a little further, showing off a set of perfectly white teeth. 

“Then...” Changkyun’s tone became playful and flirty, something you’d gotten used to over the past two years and were easily able to handle. “What is your type?”

_ Not you. _

Your mind suddenly went foggy with memories again. A bright smile. A contagious laugh. A soft whisper in your ear and the loving and gentle touch of rough and large hands. Strong arms to hold you close at night, hot skin and the faint smell of pine and blood. 

You snapped out of it by shaking your head, casting away all these memories that seemed to just randomly resurface these days.

Whenever that happened, you were in agony. Because the pain, which never really went away, intensified again, occupying every inch of your body and making it hard for you to breathe. 

It was ridiculous. You should have gotten over him by now. It had been two years for Christ’s sake. You should have moved on already, forgotten all about him. Yet you still remembered everything in vivid detail. 

His voice. His smile. His kiss.

And it still hurt.

But you were getting better. Slowly but steadily you were getting over him, even though it hardly felt like it at the moment. But at least you weren’t losing sleep anymore simply because he wasn’t lying next to you. You weren’t waking up with tears streaming down your face because he’d visited you in your dreams. And you also stopped hesitating when you covered your own tattoos with make-up in the morning. 

So you were getting better. Your wounds were steadily healing. And soon enough only the scars would remain. They’d hurt occasionally, but sooner or later you’d forget you even had them. 

So maybe, just maybe, it was time to move on. 

And perhaps Changkyun was the right guy for the job. Since he was the complete opposite of… him.

So why not risk it? Why not flirt a little with the guy that was so obviously interested in you? Because you really liked Changkyun. He was a playful and funny guy with surprisingly deep thoughts and a sense of responsibility that was uncommon for guys his age. And you got along great. Talking to him was never boring and you’d had countless dinners with him where you’d forgotten the time, staying with him at a crowded restaurant until it was almost empty because you were so engaged in a conversation.

So why not go for it, right?

You cleared your throat a little and tried your best to sound as flirty as you possibly could. “It’s a secret.”

Changkyun’s eyes widened in surprise and you already knew that this had been a very bad idea. “Was that?” He let out a deep laugh before he took a step closer to you. Had he always smelled of sea salt and sage? “Wait. Did you just try to flirt with me?”

You could feel your cheeks flush with heat as Changkyun was looking at you with that lopsided smirk that you knew made a lot of girls weak in the knees. God, you shouldn’t have tried being coy. You weren’t good at that. Which didn’t come as much of a surprise considering the fact that you’d been in a relationship ever since you’d turned fourteen. You only ever had to flirt with guys in order to get what you wanted for the Clan. And that had been a completely different thing. 

“No, I wasn’t.” you quickly replied before turning your back on Changkyun and walking towards the huge conference table that barely fit into his already large office. The shiny mahogany surface was completely covered with all sorts of paperwork. 

With just one look you could already tell that this was a complete mess that had gotten out of hand. You stepped a little closer and narrowed your eyes. You knew those papers. Quite well actually since it had taken you days to properly organize them.

“Are those the papers for the merger?” 

Changkyun hesitated for a second. “Yeah.” 

“Changkyun! For Christ's sake!” You raised your voice in anger. You had worked for two days and one night straight in order to get this done. “The merger is supposed to happen next week! How are you still not done with the paperwork?” You looked at Changkyun who avoided your gaze and just scratched the back of his head like a schoolboy who was being scolded by his teacher. “You were only supposed to take another look at them and then sign the goddamn contract! How the hell did you make such a mess?”

“Don’t be so mad at me.” Changkyun pouted a bit. But then his face suddenly became stern. Dark even. “There was something fishy about their numbers so I went through all of it again.” He looked you straight in the eyes and you could see the worry and determination in his. “I can’t afford to f*ck this up.”

Yeah. You knew he couldn’t. This was Changkyun’s first big project ever since he’d taken over CODA Pharmaceuticals from his sick father three years ago. Everybody's eyes were on the young CEO who’d been in charge of one of the biggest companies in the country ever since the young age of twenty. Everybody expected him to mess this up and the sharks were already ready to rip him to shreds once they were able to smell even the faintest drop of blood in the water. And you knew exactly what that felt like. All those expectations. All those enemies surrounding you, waiting for you to make a mistake. You really felt for him, which was exactly why you couldn’t stay mad.

You let out a sigh, accepting your fate of at least one more night shift. You took off your blazer and put it over the back of one of the fifteen chairs that had been arranged around the large table. “Okay. What do you need me to do?”

Changkyun smiled brightly at you before he came closer again, his left hand hand settling on the chair right next to you while the other rested on top of the conference table, closing you in and causing your heart to beat a little faster when you felt his chest touching your back. “Help me find their last five tax declarations and their sale numbers from 2011 until now.”

You nodded before looking at the mess again. “You know that I would have been able to find them a lot faster if you didn’t go all crazy professor on this, right?” You reached out to loosely rearrange some of the documents. “This just screams overtime.”

“It’ll be faster if I just hel-”

“No. You stay away from this.” You glanced over your shoulder just to realize how close Changkyun actually was. “You know I think you’re a genius but you’re a mess when it comes to organizing. So let me do this and just focus on something else. Preferably something that doesn’t ruin two nights worth my work.”

Changkyun smiled softly, casting away some of the worry on his handsome face. “Thanks Y/F/N. I owe you.”

“You can pay me back with a hefty raise.”

Changkyun’s gaze was shifting between your eyes and your lips and when he started speaking again his voice sounded a little lower than usual. “I was thinking about a nice dinner instead. Just the two of us. What do you say?”

Silence suddenly filled the room. You could hear Soojeon’s muffled voice from outside the office while the clock on the wall steadily kept ticking. 

Your thoughts were a mess. Should you go out with him? Shouldn’t you? Were you ready? Weren’t you ready? Were you ever going to be ready? He probably had moved on a long time ago. Yet you still hesitated, not even daring to flirt back even a little bit whenever a guy had shown interest in you. So wasn’t it finally time? Maybe it would help you forget all about him. Even though you seriously doubted that you were ever able to do that. But you should at least try, right? You couldn’t live on with this constant pain in your chest. And there was also no way of ever going back. You’d lost him forever the night you’d walked out of the mansion. He was gone. 

And it was time that you accepted that and moved on.

“I-” Your answer was cut short as the loud ringtone of your phone violently broke the silence. “Excuse me.” You moved back a little, forcing Changkyun to let go of the chair. You reached for the inner pocket of your blazer and frowned as you looked at the two phones you now held in your hand. You used the white one for work. Usually it was ringing almost constantly. But now the display was pitch-black. Instead, the golden one, your private one, was ringing.

The phone that only two people had the number of. And one of them was standing right next to you, looking down at you in confusion.

“Sorry.” You lifted your phone a little before pointing towards the office door. “May I?”

Changkyun took a huge step backwards, making some room for you to properly move. “Sure thing.”

“Thanks. I’ll be right back.” You went out of the office and turned to your left, still looking down at the phone in your hand that just kept on ringing. A landline number. And judging by the fact that it started with a 51 it had to be a caller from Busan. But nobody knew your private cell number except for Changkyun and Kihyun. You’d made sure of that, not wanting to take any risks. 

So who the hell was calling you?

You sped up your footsteps, almost running down the hallway that led you towards the fire escape which was often used by Changkyun for a quick smoke. Your heart was beating rapidly in your chest and your hands were starting to sweat as your brain was already going through all the possibilities. And all of them were terrifying.

You knew you shouldn’t answer this call. Everything inside you screamed and begged of you not to accept it. To just ignore it and pretend this never happened. But you knew that ignorance isn't bliss. It was dangerous. And in your case it could even be deadly. If they found you, you needed to know so you could at least try to get away. Even though you knew that it would probably be impossible. Especially if Hyunwoo had sent… him. 

There was no escaping him. At least not for you. 

And your brother was very well aware of that.

You shoved open the exit door and stepped out onto the landing. You tried not to focus on the fact that you were on the twentieth floor or that the wind was howling in your ears.

Instead you forced yourself to finally answer the call.

“Hello?” You tried to sound strong and daring, not giving away the fact that you were shaking with fear. But you failed. Your voice was high pitched and completely out of tune.

“Hello.” You frowned. Not at all what you’d expected. This was the voice of a young woman. And she sounded stressed out and even a little agitated. “This is the Emergency Room of Busan General Hospital speaking.”

The ER? Did Kihyun have an accident? But you talked to him a little over fifteen minutes ago. And Busan General was on the other side of town. No way he –

“Hello!” The nurse said again, now sounding mildly anxious. “Are you there?”

“Sorry.” God, you had to snap out of it. “Yes. Yes I’m listening.”

“I asked you what your name was.”

“My name is Lee Y/F/N.” You tried to calm down so that your brain could start to make sense of what was actually going on. “I’m sorry but I am  a little confused as to why the ER is calling me.

The woman started speaking again. “We have an unidentified male in our trauma ward with a stab wound to his lower abdomen. He had nothing on him except for 50 million Won and a cellphone with only one number saved in it.” She seemed to carefully arrange her words before she kept going. “And that number was yours.”

Stab wound. Lower abdomen.

_ Thank God - it’s not him. _

After spending years in the inner circle of the Clan you knew all the signature killing methods. Especially his. And he had always been the type to break bones instead of dealing with a huge pool of blood at his feet. 

No, this wasn’t him. But that didn’t make this whole thing less dangerous. Because a stab wound like that was Jooheon’s specialty. Your brother’s very own assassin and one of the sickest bastards you’d ever met. He always went for a stab wound, making his victims suffer and slowly but steadily bleed to death at his feet. He enjoyed hearing them scream and beg for mercy. But all of them pleaded in vain. You’d never heard of a life speared by Lee Jooheon.

Which meant that your brother had sent you a warning in form of a dead body. Quite theatrical. Especially for somebody like Hyunwoo. 

But apparently things changed.

“Are you sure about that?” you said, your voice a bit calmer now. “He didn’t have any note on him? Or something written across his chest or something?”

“What?” The nurse must have been under the impression that you were insane, but you didn’t have the time to care about stuff like that.

“I asked if he had something written on him. In ink or in blood?” You thought about how your father had relayed messages like that to his enemies. “Or does he have a tattoo?”

“Who the hell are you?”

God, you’d almost forgot how bothersome it was to deal with mere civilians in situations like that. They were always too nosy for their own good, resulting in a lot of them being killed for absolutely no reason but their own curiosity. 

You let out a long and drawn-out sigh, your brain already formulating an escape plan instead of trying to be empathetic towards the woman that was probably absolutely terrified by all your questions. “Just check.”

Getting out of Busan would cost you a fortune. Especially if you wanted to be gone without a trace. And you definitely needed to if Jooheon was close by. Maybe this time you should really consider getting yourself a fake passport and escaping to the United States. But your brother had a lot of business partners there so Europe or Australia might be the better alternative. But both were pricey. And it wasn’t like Changkyun was paying you a lot of money. You were just a personal assistant for Christ’s sake. You could consider yourself lucky because you were able to pay the bloody rent. 

Good thing you knew how to make money fast. Maybe you should –

“Are you kidding? He’s covered in tattoos! And I really shouldn’t get too close to him if he’s unconscious. That’s considered sexual harassment! And he isn’t just some piece of meat!” 

Your thoughts came to a sudden halt. What did she just say? You must have been mistaken, right? 

Jooheon never spared a life. Never.

“Wait - He isn’t dead?”

“No he isn’t!” The nurse sounded hysterical by now. “And what kind of question is that?” 

You couldn’t care less. You needed her to be absolutely sure about this. “Are you sure he is alive and breathing?”

“Well, I am only a mere nurse so why don’t you come down here and tell me?” She huffed. “We need him to be identified. The police will arrive shortly and – Wait…”

“Did you find something?” Maybe your brother had actually left a message for you. Something that would give you a hint as to how close he truly was.

“Not really. I just noticed this tattoo on his neck.”

You closed your eyes. Hoping. Praying. But the rational part of you already started to paint the picture for you. And it sure as hell wasn’t a pretty one. 

Your heart started to rapidly beat in your chest while your stomach clenched. Suddenly, you felt like drowning. As if your lungs were filling up with water and making it unable for you to take one steady breath after the other. You shouldn’t ask. You really shouldn’t. Because you knew that your worst fears would come to life the moment you did. Yet your mouth started to move on it’s own, making the words fall off your tongue in a frenzy. 

“What does it say?”

You could hear the ruffling of clothes. The steady beeping of the ECG. The nurse who cursed under her breath as she probably leaned in a little closer to the patient to get a proper look at the tattoo.

You knew that it must have been only a matter of seconds until she started speaking again but to you it felt like minutes. And when she finally did, she shattered your peaceful world into a million little pieces.

“Yours.”


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That one phone call will change your life forever. And even though you are very well aware of the consequences, you can’t stop yourself from running right back…

“Yours”

One word. That’s all it took for your brain to go haywire and your heart to brutally murder your rationality with the sharp dagger of your raw and unfiltered emotions. Your feet started moving before you realized it. Or rather before you were able to stop yourself.

“I’ll be right there.” You hung up, paying no mind to the nurse. By now she must be convinced that you were some kind of lunatic. Maybe she regretted dialing the saved number in the first place.

But she would never be able to take it back. Because there was no such thing as turning back time. No matter how much one wished for it. No matter how much regret filled one's heart.

Time was ruthless. And it never gave any second chances.

You gripped the phone tightly as you ran towards the heavy exit door that you simply shoved open with the force of your shoulder. The sound of your heels was like gunfire, echoing off the walls of the hallway that would lead you straight back to Changkyun’s office.

Hoseok was in the hospital.

Stabbed. Unconscious. Helpless.

And in danger, since Hyunwoo obviously wanted him dead.

Once your brother would realize that Jooheon had failed, he’d send someone else. Someone who was very unlikely to fail. Especially in a hospital.

He would probably send Minhyuk. He knew how to blend in. How to charm people into giving him what he wanted. Or to disappear completely even in a room full of people.

If you wanted to make a statement with a kill, you went with Jooheon. But if you wanted things to be over without a trace, Minhyuk was your man.

Sneaky. Invisible. And awfully familiar with all sorts of medication that could either cause a merciful death within a heartbeat or make his victim suffer, crying out in pain over the course of hours if he felt like it.

Hoseok wouldn’t be able to see him coming. And the thought alone of him grunting in pain and losing his life made you speed up your steps even further. You basically slithered around the corner as you passed the reception area in front of Changkyun’s office that usually was your workplace. Your hands grabbed a hold of the edge of Soojeon’s desk to steady yourself before your leaped forwards, pushing open the door to Changkyun’s office with so much force that it hit the wall. You could hear the faint cracking of glass but you sure as hell didn’t care.

You could only think about one thing. And that was saving Hoseok’s life.

“Y/F/N, can’t you-” Soojeon jumped up from her seat, lifting her finger at you in anger. “Hey! Are you insane? You can’t just-”

“Shut up for Christ’s sake!” You said, brushing her off without thinking twice before you walked over to Changkyun who was still standing at the conference table, his eyes wide with shock as he looked back and forth between you and his now slightly cracked office door.

Usually, you wouldn’t have lost your cool like that. No matter how annoyed or angry or lonely you were, you were always able to hide it behind a neutral smile, not giving anybody a chance to look deeper than surface level. But this was about Hoseok. This was different.

You held out your hand towards Changkyun in urgency, ignoring the suspicious look he was giving you. “I need your car.”

Your boss frowned, obviously even more confused than before. “What?”

F*ck! You didn’t have time to explain! “Car keys! Now!”

“Alright. Alright.” Changkyun patted down his body, cursing under his breath before he walked over towards the coat rack that was hanging on the wall next to his huge glass desk. “What the hell happened?”

“Emergency.” You shifted your weight from one foot onto the other, eager to get out of there. You knew you were losing precious seconds that might end up saving or ending Hoseok’s life. And you were wasting them because Changkyun had to search in the depths of his thin designer coat. “If you could hurry it up. I really gotta-”

“Got them.” Changkyun pulled out the keys and you came to meet him halfway. You reached out your hand to grab the keys but he held them above his head, making you growl in with anger.

“Hey Y/F/N! Wait a second.” He held up his other hand in a gesture that was probably supposed to calm you down, but it only made you more furious. “I don’t think you should drive right now. Let me call Hongsik. He’ll dri-”

God! Was he for real? You loved Changkyun’s chauffeur but that man was getting old and he always drove way too slow, causing you to be at least five minutes late to almost all your meetings. And this time you didn’t have five minutes to spare. Maybe not even five seconds, depending on how close your brother actually was.

“Changkyun.” You said with anger straining your voice. “Give me the f*cking keys.” You didn’t care about the fact that you’d never cussed in front of your boss, who was eyeing you like you were a complete stranger. You had to get those bloody keys. Even if you’d have to break his damn wrist to get them. Luckily you didn’t have to. Instead, Changkyun lowered his arm and opened his fist. The slick black car key fell into the palm of your hand, the silver trident emblem shining under the office lights.

You turned on your heels and headed for the door. “Thanks, Changkyun.”

“Be careful.”

When you heard the anxious tone of in his voice you almost looked back over your shoulder. But you couldn’t. Your sight was already set on the elevator doors. However, there was something you could do. “Soojeon.” You said, looking at the flinching secretary right after pressing the call button for the elevator. “Help Mr. Im with the documents.”

“Alright.” Judging by the pale tone of her skin Soojeon was probably too afraid of you to tell you off. The elevator arrived and the doors opened, so you stepped inside. “When are you going to come back?”

You didn’t answer since you didn’t know if you were even able to make it back. Because if any of Hyunwoo’s men would reach Hoseok before you did, you’d both be dead.

Instead, you just watched the doors close right in front of you, enclosing you, and leaving you with the feeling of being suffocated and the faint sound of elevator music.

You closed your eyes and let your head fall against the cold metal. Suddenly, that small car key in your hand felt like it weighted at least a ton while the elevator seemed to move in slow-motion.

It gave you some time to think, which wasn’t necessarily a good thing. Because unlike the toned-down and calming music that was softly playing in the background your thoughts were like bullets. Loud. Dangerous. And leaving behind nothing but a bloody and deadly mess that was hard to make sense of.

How the hell had it come to this? Why was your number saved into Hoseok’s phone? How was Hoseok doing? Did he regain consciousness? Was he suffering from the pain? Or did Minhyuk find him already, swiftly ending his life with a syringe, making him die alone?

But even if your thoughts and feelings were in shambles, attacking you viscously with their sharp edges, one thing was painfully obvious: Hoseok was in the hospital, stabbed by no other than the infamous Lee Jooheon. Which could only mean one thing - Your brother wanted his best friend dead.

But why?

Hyunwoo had always loved and adored Hoseok. He’d been his closest friend and companion ever since your father had taken him in all those years ago. They’d been through thick and thin together, defeating dangerous enemies and drinking away the pain while getting stitched up by no other than you. They’d overcome so much together. Like the death of your father, countless wars with other clans or the news of Hoseok dating you behind Hyunwoo’s back.

They’d fought, threw punches and insulted each other. But they’d also been each other’s backbone in difficult times, supporting one another like only brothers would.

So why did Hyunwoo want Hoseok dead?

The elevator came to a sudden halt and you hurriedly checked the level you were on. The underground parking garage. Perfect.

The doors opened and you quickly walked out, unfazed by the amount of cars that had been parked here. You knew exactly where you were going. Four of the parking spots were reserved for the CEO. And luckily they were right next to the elevator. Also Changkyun’s car was pretty hard to miss.

You unlocked the car with the remote on the key and the headlights lid up, as if you’d been able to walk past it without this useless feature. A Maserati Ghibli S Q4 GRANDSPORT. In white. Changkyun’s favorite color.

You despised that car. It was flashy and drew too much attention. But it’s 430 horsepowers would help you get to the other side of town in no time. And that was more important than anything else. So you opened the door and got into the driver's seat. Your hands touched the steering wheel that was covered in black italian leather and you tried your best not to think about the fact that all of this felt oddly familiar. Instead, you started the engine which came to life with a smooth and low purr before you reversed out of the parking lot. It was a little strange, sitting behind the wheel of a car again after two years. You hadn’t been able to buy a car because of your fake ID so you’d only ever used public transport. And if you’d had to go anywhere that was related to work you’d always been in the backseat, right next to Changkyun. Good thing that Hyungwon, your close friend and the Clan’s get-away driver, had taught you how to drive any type of car. Even a bullet-proof SUV. You drove the car out of the garage and onto the street. Once you were on the highway, you put the pedal to the metal, hoping and praying that you weren’t already too late.

You broke countless traffic regulations. Especially the speed limit. But you didn’t mind. Because even if the police would try to stop you, you would be able to get rid of them easily with the driving skills you had. You overtook one car after the other and once you’ve passed the bridge that lead you away from the bay and closer to the city limits you felt like you were on a speedway that lead you right back to your past.

And to some extent it was true. Because this path led you straight back to the man you’d been in love with for so many years.

What had happened that Hoseok ended up in the hospital, stabbed by one of his friends? Had he betrayed Hyunwoo? Had he left the Clan after years of being one of their most trusted and most efficient soldiers?

No, that was absolutely impossible and you were ashamed that the thought had even crossed your mind.

You knew Hoseok better than that. The Clan had been his life. His family. And he’d have rather killed himself than betray your brother or the Son family. He was loyal to a fault. Which was exactly why your father had taken him in and trained him to be your brothers right-hand man even though Hoseok had been a nobody - An orphan without any known connection to the dark royalty of Seoul’s messed-up underworld. Usually, a guy like him would have never been able to enter a family like yours, that had been built upon generations of the most powerful and gruesome leaders the city had ever seen. Usually, he’d have been deemed unworthy of being a right-hand man, and even more unworthy of being your husband-to-be.

But your father had seen Hoseok’s potential. Or rather his fragile heart that had only ever wanted to find a place to call home. And he’d used that good and lonely heart of his to turn him into a soldier for his own dark and pointless war. Hoseok had learned all sorts of fighting and killing techniques from that sadistic bastard. He’d been quick on the uptake, eager to learn and even more eager to please the man who’d given him a sense of purpose and a roof over his head. So he’d put in an extra amount of effort, quickly outshining all the other students your father had ever had.

Including your own brother.

But your brother had been unfazed by Hoseok, accepting your father’s protégé as a friend and rival, because Hyunwoo had always known that he’d be king one day. That the Clan was his. And only his. So he’d never seen Hoseok as a threat. He’d always been his brother in arms. His companion.

So what had happened between them?

You’d probably find out soon enough.

At least that was the thought that crossed your mind when you finally reached the big hospital, that looked as bleak and run-down as any other clinic in the outskirts of Busan.

You parked Changkyun’s car right in front of the ER, shoving the door open before you’d even really stopped the engine. Annoyed by the high heels limiting your walking speed you quickly took them off, throwing them on to the passenger’s seat without hesitation. Then you closed the door with a lot more force than necessary and locked the car that was already gaining a lot of attention by the people smoking outside. However, you couldn’t concern yourself with keeping a low profile. Instead, you headed straight for the automatic doors. You rushed through them, almost stumbling when you had to stop to take look around.

You were at the very entrance of the ER, right next to the reception desk. To your right was the waiting area, with lines of seemingly uncomfortable white plastic chairs of which almost all were occupied by people who either seemed to be in pain or were coughing their lungs out. To your left were at least twenty beds lined up, all of them only separated by thin green curtains that hardly gave any privacy. A lot of people were lying down there, some of them as white as the hospital walls. Others looked almost green.

The ER seemed to be very busy, which was probably because it was the end of April and Busan was haunted by the usual spring flu epidemic. A lot of people were talking, while the phones seemed to ring almost constantly. Nurses and doctors were running back and forth, paying you no mind and for a split second you felt small and lost in the midst of all this, with your bare feet touching the cold grey linoleum floor.

But you didn’t have the time to feel helpless or useless. You needed to find Hoseok. Before it was too late.

You didn’t search for him in the packed ER. It was obvious that he wasn’t here. Instead, you walked up to an older woman who, judging by the pink scrubs she was wearing, must have been a nurse. She had her long black hair neatly put up in a bun and you could see that some strands of her hair had already turned grey. And even though her skin had a youthful glow she had some wrinkles around her eyes and her mouth.

“Where is he?”

The nurse turned around to face you. She seemed calm. Collected. And completely unimpressed by your loud and shaky voice. Instead, she just laid her hand on your forearm, gently squeezing it. “Who are you looking for, dearie?”

Her hands felt cold on your heated skin. How was she even able to touch your skin? You hardly wore any short sleeves, worried that the make-up might come off, exposing your tattoos. But then you remembered. You’d forgotten to put your blazer back on before leaving Changkyun’s office, leaving you in nothing but the midnight blue sheath dress that you’d been wearing since this morning. “Unidentified male. In his mid-twenties. Stabwound.”

“Ah.” She looked at another nurse, who was standing on the other side of the desk, eyeing you with suspicion in her eyes. “He’s Heeyeon’s patient, right?” The other nurse just nodded and handed her colleague a thin patient chart. “Are you his next of kin?”

 _No_. “Yes.”

“So she was able to reach somebody. That’s great.” The older nurse opened up the sheet and took a look at what you thought must have been Hoseok’s data. “First of all, you don’t need to worry that much. He is stable for now. The stab wound was rather deep but it didn’t damage any organs which is great. Unfortunately, he lost a lot of blood since it apparently took a while before somebody found him.” She looked up from the chart, smiling at you reassuringly. “He’s got a few fractured ribs, the fingers on his left hand are all swollen and he has some cuts on his forehead and cheeks but nothing too dramatic. The doctor was very careful in stitching them up in order not to ruin that handsome face of his.”

This sounded a lot like Jooheon’s doing. He always liked to ‘play’ with his victims first. “Where is he?”

“At the end of the hall.” She pointed towards another set of automatic doors, that would lead you deeper into the hospital and probably into the trauma ward. “The last room on the right-hand side. But last time I checked he was still unconscious. The police are on their way to ask the two of you some questions. But you’ve got nothing to worry about. It’s obvious that he was assaulted.”

“Thank you.” You forced a smile while your brain was already formulating a plan. You needed to get Hoseok out of here before the police arrived. Because no matter the city - being questioned by the police was to be avoided by people like you. Especially since you were living under a fake name with only a fake ID.

“No problem.” The nurse closed the patient chart and handed it back to her colleague. “By the way - you don’t look much alike. Are you his fiancé?”

You answered out of habit without thinking twice. “Yes.”

The younger nurse scoffed a little. “Lucky you.”

You cursed yourself under your breath for that blunt lie but it was the least suspicious explanation for you being here. So you simply nodded and bowed a little before heading in the direction the nurse had told you to go. You passed the automatic door and were faced with a long hallway that was seemingly endless. Once the doors behind you closed again, it became utterly quiet. You could hear muffled talking behind some of the closed blue doors. Sometimes there was even a soft sob. But in comparison to the busy ER this place felt like a graveyard. It smelled of sanitizer, tears and a hint of blood.

To you, this was what death smelled like.

But you shouldn’t revisit the ghosts of the past. You shouldn’t let your weak heart drag you back into that grey hospital room in Seoul where you’d first encountered death when you’d only been six years old. No matter how much you tried, the image of your mother still came to mind, staring at you with open and lifeless eyes. But it started to become distorted. And suddenly you weren’t looking at your mother anymore. Instead, Hoseok’s empty eyes were staring back at you.

Your heart skipped a beat and you started to hurry again. You had wasted enough time. Now you needed to get him out of here. It should be easy with him being unconscious. You just needed to steal some nurses clothes and cover his face. Then you’d just pretend that you were taking a dead body to the morgue. Just like in the movies. Nice and easy. Without anybody noticing. And without having to face Hoseok’s hate and anger head-on. You’d get him out of here and into the backseat of Changkyun’s car. And then…

Sh*t. You had absolutely no idea what to do after that, but you would figure it out eventually.

For now, you needed to focus on saving his life.

You reached the end of the white hall and looked at the blue door to your right. Behind that door was your first love. The man you’d left in the middle of the night, only two months prior to your wedding. The man you’d planned a grand future with. And the man you’d loved more than anything else and had never been able to forget.

You reached for the doorknob, trying to ignore the fact that your hand was shaking. When your fingertips were finally touching the knob, you couldn’t bring yourself to open the door.

You knew you couldn’t let him die, but you were afraid of facing him after all this time. After betraying him and walking out on him like the coward you were.

But, no matter how afraid you were - you couldn’t let him die.

And since he was unconscious you’d be alright. At least for now.

So you quickly opened the door and snuck inside, careful not to draw any more attention than you already did back in the ER.

You leaned your back against the door and closed your eyes in order to calm down and to organize your thoughts. You were on the ground floor and at the very end of the hall. The morgue was probably a floor below which meant that you needed an elevator. Maybe the emergency plan would tell you where exactly it was located. You should have really paid more attention to your surroundings when you’d arrived at the ER. But you’d been so out of it that you couldn’t remember a bloody thing. Something your brother would have scolded you for. So you needed to find the emergency plan. It was usually hung on the door. Or at least positioned right next to it.

You opened your eyes to look around. But all your thoughts and plans came to a sudden halt when a pair of cognac brown eyes was staring right at you.

Hoseok wasn’t unconscious. Not at all.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, pale as a ghost and with his upper body covered in bandages. He was looking straight at you. His face not giving away any emotion as he hid himself behind this impregnable mask of cold indifference that your father had taught him and that you had always despised.

At this moment he wasn’t Shin Hoseok, the love of your life.

He was Wonho, your brother's loyal soldier and attack dog.

And he was looking at you like you were the next target on his hit list.

“Long time no see, Y/N.”

 

_to be continued..._


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting Wonho again after all these years is bringing back all sorts of memories that you aren’t ready for…

“Wonho.” His fake name, that your father had chosen upon assigning him as your brother’s protector and right-hand man, left your lips in a breathless whisper. It was barely audible over the steady noise of the ECG that was still attached to Hoseok’s chest. A sign of how close he must have been to death, if they were still monitoring his vitals like this, with all these electrodes stuck to every part of his chest that wasn’t covered in bandages.

Worry was washing over you, mixing with a hint of fear and switched off your brain as you were swaying on your feet trying to decide between flight or fight. You were worried about him. So much that you wanted to walk towards him to take a closer look at all of his wounds and mend them with your own hands.

But you knew you should keep your distance. Because even with Hoseok being this hurt, he was still a lot stronger and faster than you. Your father had turned him into a soldier, once he’d gotten the order to kill he’d proceed. And with his cognac-colored eyes watching you intensely like this, you knew better than to get too close. But your worry was dragging your feet slightly towards him, while you were still trying to figure out whether he was a real threat to you right now or if he was too weak to severely hurt you.

You took a closer look at the bandages. Some of them were still white, like the one covering his right shoulder, but some of them were already starting to show hints of red underneath all the fabric.

Jooheon hadn’t just stabbed him. He’d tortured him, using his trusty knife to cut open his skin, leaving blood, pain and scars behind. Before you could stop that stupid brain of yours it was already showing you the gruesome scene that had probably taken place only a few hours ago.

A skeevy motel room. A puddle of blood. And Hoseok grunting in pain, left to die on the sticky floor, like a mere animal, by the men he’d once called his brothers.

That was the world he was living in. And the world that you’d called home for many, many years. The world that was covered in blood and stained with tears. Where the empires were built upon the rotting flesh of their enemies while the path to the crown was paved with nothing but evil intentions.

It was a world of monsters and demons.

And one of them was sitting only a few feet away from you, pretending like none of this really bothered him. Like he was still that hungry beast, with its teeth bared and its claws sharpened, ready to attack and take you down, ripping out your throat with a victorious howl even if you only tried to help.

You could feel a drop of fear clouding your judgment for a while as you were eying the predator that was looking at you as if you were his prey, with his sharp dark brown eyes fixated on your every move.  

You shouldn’t get any closer to him. Every fiber of your body told you to stay away. Yet, you took another step, like he was a puppeteer, drawing you in with those invisible strings of his.

You almost gasped when you realized just how badly he was hurt.

Hoseok was sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, eying you warily. His skin, which was pale to begin with, now resembled the first snow which usually fell in the beginning of December. The veins underneath looked like little rivers, breaking through the ice, fighting hard to keep the land alive with their endless stream of water. Even all the tattoos and bandages couldn’t cover them properly.

His raven hair just added to your impression of seeing a ghost. Just like the dark shadows under his eyes did. His plush lips were bloodless and a little chapped, so that the black lip ring in the center looked like a violent first stroke of a pitch black brush on an untouched canvas. Gone was the captivating shade of red that had always compelled you to steal a kiss every chance you could get.

You could see all sorts of bruises forming on his face, turning the skin over his left cheekbone into a deep shade of purple and his nose… it seemed to be a little crooked. Jooheon must have broken it in his violent assault on Hoseok’s life. You knew that Hoseok would be able to fix that by himself. You’d done it for him countless times, keeping his face as perfect as it’s ever been. But you knew that it would hurt like hell and once his body would start to properly heal, it’d only get worse. If he’d wait for too long, he’d have to break it all over again and if you remembered correctly, your brother had once thrown up upon breaking his own nose in order to push it back into place. The loud noise of the bone snapping back into place was still fresh in your memory.

Hoseok looked weak. Vulnerable. Like a dead man walking.

Yet, he was holding himself upright, not allowing his upper body to slouch down even a bloody inch. He tried to look like this unbroken and unbound soldier that your father had always expected him to be, but you could see that just sitting was eating away at what little strength he had left. Sweat was glistening on his forehead and his lower lip was trembling ever so slightly as he kept looking at you, putting up a front of being indestructible and unfazed by the wounds that were covering his body.

But no matter how hard he tried, you wouldn’t be fooled.

This beast was of no threat to you. At least for now.

Still he desperately tried to keep face.

That stubborn son of a b*tch.

You walked over to the bed, reaching for his shoulder to press him back down onto the mattress, telling him that he didn’t need to put up a front with you. That you were seeing right through all of his bullsh*t. But before your fingers could even do as much as brush his skin, he stopped you dead in your tracks by grabbing a hold of your wrist, forcing you into a long, drawn out second of motionless cruelty.

His touch was just like you remembered it.

Hot. A little rough. And setting your entire world on fire.

And it was immediately spreading through every fibre of your being, making you feel like you were melting under his touch, exposing everything you wanted to keep hidden.

Your longing. Your need. Your craving.

You needed to stop but you had a hard time thinking. So you took a weak breath in a desperate attempt to extinguish the flames that were seemingly swallowing you whole.

But it was of no use.

His deadly heat was already consuming you again, turning your brain into a useless clump of nerves, liquids and flesh. You couldn’t allow yourself to fall for him again. To be consumed by him. But you’ve always had a weak spot for him.

For his smile. His voice. His touch.

And judging by the way his plush lips turned into a knowing smirk, he must have felt it too, that destructive spark that was suddenly being reignited after years of smoldering hidden deep within you. It was grabbing a hold of your body and soul, dragging you deeper into this heat which would lead you straight to your demise.

You needed to get it together. Right now. Or the sacrifice you’d made two years ago would be meaningless.

“Y/N.” Hoseok’s voice sounded husky and a little shaky but his tight grip on your wrist felt as powerful as ever, his fingers digging deep into your skin as if he was trying to leave his mark on you. “How long has it been? Two years?”

You felt like your carefully constructed life was falling apart. Just like that. And all it took was for him to mention your real name after two years of pretending to be somebody else.  

“One year and eleven months.” The words left your mouth before you could stop yourself. F*ck. You really needed to get your sh*t together otherwise your resolve would crumble down into a million little pieces right here and now.

Hoseok raised his eyebrow. “Well, somebody’s counting.”

You snarled at him and with a forceful snap of your wrist you pulled free from his grip. Hoseok usually was a lot stronger than you. This shouldn’t have been possible. Which gave away just how vulnerable he actually was at this very moment.

So the beast really had lost its claws and teeth. Temporarily at least.  

But your safety meant something quite worrisome in return: If he couldn’t restrain somebody like you, he wouldn’t stand a chance against any of Hyunwoo’s men. Like a pack of hungry wolves they’d attack him and rip him to shreds, without a care for his wounded and weak state.

You gently rubbed the skin on your wrist, trying to brush away the heat you felt as well as the dark shadows his grip had casted on your pale skin. You really needed to get yourself occupied. With basically anything. Your laid eyes on Hoseok again. Well, getting to the bottom of this mess was a good start, right?

You let go of your wrist and crossed your arms over your chest as you were looking straight into his dark brown eyes. “So, what the hell did you do?”

Hoseok cocked up his eyebrow. “What?”

He wasn’t going to play dumb with you. Not when he’d gotten both your a**es in trouble with listing you as his emergency contact. You took another step towards Hoseok and leaned down a little, your face now right in front of his.

“I asked you,” you said, slowing down your words to make sure he understood each and every one of them “what the hell you did to piss off my brother so f*cking much that he wants you dead.”

Hoseok seemed to be unfazed by you being this close to him. He just stared into your eyes for a few seconds before leaning back a little, his eyes now running up and down your body as he was probably taking all of you in.

“You look good,” he said, but you could detect a hint of resentment straining his voice. This obviously wasn’t meant to be a compliment. “Seems like your life has been nice and easy.”

Nice and easy? He had no idea what the hell he was talking about. The last two years had been hell. You’d constantly looked over your shoulder, fearing somebody would turn up to kill you. But the fear, the paranoia and the insomnia hadn’t been the worst of it. It had been the nights where you’d cried yourself to sleep because you’d missed Hyunwoo and Hoseok so much that it had felt like your heart had been ripped out of your chest.

“Wonho-”

“-Are those designer clothes? You must have a decent job if you’re still able to afford stuff like that.” He clicked his tongue “But then again you always had a weakness for anything Dior or Chanel.” His lips curled up into a cruel grin. “Once a princess - always a princess, right?”

His words hurt. Much more than you’d ever admit. But this wasn’t the time for ripping open old wounds or for carving new ones into each other’s souls. You needed to know what the hell was going on  and in how much danger the two of you actually were. It was about damn time he realized that too. Otherwise you’d just leave his weak and sorry a** behind.

Yeah. As if.

“Wonho. This isn’t the time for your stupid games,” you said almost pleadingly. But you could see by the way his features hardened even further, that all your usual tricks won’t work this time around. Of course they wouldn’t. He wasn’t in love with you anymore. He didn’t care about your feelings being hurt. Or about you for that matter. He hadn’t saved your number as an emergency contact because he’d missed you just as much as you’d missed him.

No. He was using you. Plain and simple.

“You are in no position to ask me any questions about the Clan or your brother.” Hoseok’s voice sounded more like the growl of an angry hound than the voice of an actual human being. “Don’t you think?”

He was right. You’d lost all your rights when you’d turned your back on them. You weren’t part of this anymore. So why the hell did you even come here in the first place?

“I am only trying to help.”

Hoseok scuffed. “No. You are trying to ease your guilty conscience.” His hand was reaching for his mobile phone that was lying on the side table right next to the small bed. The screen was lighting up for a brief moment. “But we don’t have time for any of that. So just get me out of here.”

Getting him out of here? Right now? Hello no! Not until you’d figured out what was going on. “Not until you’ve told me why my brother wants you dead.”

Hoseok smirked. “Sure.” You must have misheard, right? Otherwise this would’ve been way too easy. He just shrugged and looked back at his phone. “If you want to talk to the police that is.”

Police? What was he…?

As silence fell across the room you could hear heavy footsteps drawing nearer. Too loud to be a nurse or a doctor. They usually wore comfortable rubber slippers. These shoes sounded a lot heavier. A lot more like boots. And there were at least four of them. Probably still at the far end of the hall.

The nurse had told you that the police would be coming by to ask a few questions. How could you have forgotten about that?!

“F*ck.”

Hoseok let out a dry laugh that suddenly turned into a cough. “Your mother would be shocked by all those cuss words leaving that pretty mouth of yours.”

You answered without thinking twice, since your brain was already trying to formulate a plan to get both of you out of here. “You taught me most of them.”

“I also taught you a lot of other things that your mother would be shocked to know about.”

You looked at him absolutely dumbfounded. Had he really just… No. You couldn’t allow your brain to go there. Not even for a second. For now you needed to get out of here. “Shut up. Just give me some time to think.” You needed to consider all the possible options and you had to do it fast.

You looked at Hoseok, trying to evaluate his current state as accurately as possible. He probably had some broken ribs and judging by his wounds he had to be in a lot of pain. Maybe there had even been some internal bleeding. It was hard to tell without taking a look into his patient chart. “Can you walk?”

Hoseok hesitated for a second before nodding. “I guess so. But it won’t be fast.”

_Well thanks Captain Obvious_. You looked at Hoseok, eyes wide with surprise while speaking in the most fake confused and innocent tone you could muster in this situation. “And here I was, thinking we could pull a Usain Bolt on the police when you got stabbed by Jooheon.”

“How did you…”

You interrupted him before he could even finish that sentence. “Don’t you dare insult me.” You looked around. No wheelchair. Probably to prevent him from escaping. “I lived long enough in that godforsaken house to know all of my brother’s pets and their signature moves.” You walked over to the windows. You were on the raised ground floor. Your hand reached for the handle and turned it around. With a slight push, they swung open. “It’s a miracle that you survived.”

As you turned around, Hoseok was looking at you, his head kicked back a little to defend what was left of his pride. “Or skill.”

“Whatever.” You managed to stop yourself from rolling your eyes at him before you were taking in the state of his naked legs and chest. He was only wearing a pair of black boxers. “Where are your clothes?”

Hoseok shrugged. “Probably all cut up in some trash can.”

“Alright. Getting you out of here unnoticed is definitely out of the cards then.” You pointed towards the open window. “Let’s go.”

Hoseok’s jaw seemed to be dropping to the floor. “Are you kidding?”

You wish you were. But there was no other way. Even though it was risky to have him climb up the sill. “Do I look like I’m kidding?”

“Unfortunately no.” Hoseok eyed your way out skeptically. But then he let out a drawn out sigh while pulling his hair. “Damn it woman. Get me another shot of morphine and we should be ready to go.”

“No can do. It’ll slow you down too much.” You knew how his body reacted to any sort of painkiller. It turned him into a sloth. Not really something you could risk right now. “And judging be the amount of footsteps that are headed our way, we also don’t have the time for a little breaking and entering into the nurse’s office.”

“F*ck.” Hoseok nodded repeatedly, as if he was trying to convince himself that this was a good idea. Then he suddenly ushered you to come close to him. “Alright. Let’s go.”


	5. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for you to escape. Not only from the police but also from the memories of your past.

You watched as Hoseok got up on his feet, all resilience fading from his face in the exact second his feet touched the ground. He was a lot more hurt then he’d led you to believe. That stupid idiot. His pride would get him killed one day. Maybe even today which would turn you into collateral damage of his stupid male antics. Why the hell was it so damn hard for him when he wasn’t feeling alright? When he was struggling and in pain? It was really beyond you. But then again, the two of you really didn’t have the kind of relationship anymore where you would admit any weaknesses.

Hoseok’s skin turned into an even more alarming shade of grey while he was swaying on his feet. His hand was shaking as he reached out for the bedside table, gripping it tight to keep himself upright. He really must be in a lot of pain, judging by how he  gritted his teeth as he tried to stand up straight, his skin now covered in cold sweat. He wouldn’t be able to move by himself. Let alone run. You would need to help him if you both wanted to make it out of here. 

“Let me help you.” You took a step closer to him and as soon as you were within reach Hoseok slung his arm around your shoulder. 

His  sudden weight made you waver. God, he was heavy.

“Stand still for f*ck sake,” he hissed, “I’m already feeling like I’m on a friggin’ rollercoaster.”

Easier said than done. Your body was struggling to steady the both of you If you wanted to keep him upright, you needed to have a strong hold on him since Hoseok was a lot bigger than you. Good thing you’d been keeping in shape, working out three times a week.. 

You slung your arm around Hoseok’s waist and when your skin touched his, you could feel the heat rising up to your cheeks. His skin was cold. But your memories of touching it unfortunately weren’t. 

_ No. God… Please, not now.  _

“Are you blushing?” You didn’t have the courage to face Hoseok after his accurate observation. Instead you started moving towards the window. 

“I told you to shut up.” You had no time to think about that racing heart of yours. The footsteps were drawing closer very quickly. You still had to climb out of the window and walk over a large meadow to get back to the parking lot in front of the ER where you’d left Changkyun’s car. And since the both of you weren’t exactly quick, you’d need every second of lead that you could get.

“Are you ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” 

Your entire body shook when Hoseok leaned almost his entire weight on you as he was climbing over the sill. Sweat was dripping form his forehead and he had to take a few deep breaths in order not to throw up from the immense pain. Your heart ached as you watched him. A tiny part of you desperately wishing for another way out but you knew this was the only option. So you had to push through. Both of you. You could hear Hoseok groaned when he jumped out the window and you hurriedly followed him. He wouldn’t make it to the car. Not without your help. 

You landed on the grass right next to him. Hoseok was bent over, his back leaning against the wall and was dry heaving, his skin now a mixture of grey and green. His hands rested on his knees and he was taking one shaky breath after the other. It was hard on you to see him suffer like this. A lot harder than you’d like to admit. But you needed to keep moving.

“Come on,” you mumbled softly as you ran your hand over his back just like you’d done all those times when he’d been very sick. “Endure it,” you said as your hand moved from the small of his back all the way up to his neck. “We gotta go. Only a few more feet and we’ll be outta here.”

Hoseok was eying you doubtfully, a few black strands of his hair sticking to his forehead. There was nothing but silence between you and it felt like an eternity until he finally nodded. 

You took his arm and placed it on your shoulders again. “Come on. You can do this.”

When you took the first step, he was swaying so much, that you were sure you’d fall over. But with a grunt he stood up as straight as he could while steadying himself. 

Good. Now you just needed to move a little faster. 

You took a few slow steps to get Hoseok used to your movements. When you matched in step you dared to speed up. Halfway over the meadow you were almost jogging. If you’d be able to keep up the pace, you’d maybe get out of here without running into th-

“POLICE!” You turned your head a little to look back over your shoulder. An officer was leaning out the window, his head bright red as he was screaming at you in anger. “STAY RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE!”

_ Sorry. No can do.  _

You looked straight ahead and tightened your hold on Hoseok's waist. You couldn’t be easy on him any longer. You needed to hurry the hell up. 

“Wait.” Hoseok gagged. “Slow down. I can’t…”

“Well, you have to.” You pulled him even closer. “I am sorry but if we want to get out of here, you’ll have to.”

Hoseok fell silent, but he kept up with you. With every step you came closer to the parking lot, the more your body was giving out. By now you were out of breath, your dress sticking to your skin due to the sweat that seemed to be covering every inch of your body. When you finally saw the white paint of Changkyun’s car you almost sighed in relief. You led Hoseok to the passenger seat and let go of him. 

“Hurry up and get in,” you said as you were running to the driver's seat. You unlocked the car and opened your door, but Hoseok wasn’t moving. He stared at the car in suspicion. 

“Let me-”

You didn’t have time for this bullsh*t.

“HOSEOK! GET IN THE F*CKING CAR! RIGHT NOW!”

He flinched but then opened the door and fell onto the passenger's seat, a tormented howl leaving his lips by the sudden change in position.

You started the car and rushed out of your parking spot when four policemen came running out the front door of the ER. You could see that they were shouting at each other while pointing at your car. 

_ Time to get out of here _ . 

You put the pedal to the metal and the Maserati’s engine growled in anger upon the harsh treatment. With a sudden jolt you were out the parking lot and on the road. 

“Careful!” Hoseok said, gripping the sides of the seat tightly when you made a sudden right turn that would lead you straight towards Gwangan Bridge. You needed to get out of this part of town and into an  area where a car like this wouldn’t be that much out of the ordinary. There weren’t many districts in Busan, where that was the case. You were left with Haeundae or Gwangalli. Just your luck! Both of them were on the other side of that goddamn bridge. 

You took a quick look in the rearview mirror. The police was following you. You shifted gears and overtook a car before pulling on the hand brake to force the car around a sharp corner. You missed a pedestrian by a mere inch and the  t he  rear swerve d.

Their cars wouldn’t be able to keep up with the Maserati. You were sure of that. Thankfully they were forced to play nice while you could use all the dirty tricks that Chae Hyungwon  had taught you, whenever your father or Hoseok hadn’t been around to scold him for teaching you how to properly drive at the age of 15.

“God, woman.” Hoseok was holding onto the hand grip as if his life depended on it. “Are you trying to kill us?”  

You stepped on the brake to avoid crashing into another car before overtaking it with a sharp snap on the steering wheel. “Do you want to get caught by the police?”

He shook his head. “No.”

“Then stop being a smartass and let me get us out of here.”

You took a quick look at the clock on the display.. It was 4 P.M. Gwangan Bridge would be pretty busy by now with all sorts of delivery trucks and regular cars heading towards the busy streets of Haeundae and Gwangalli which really came alive during the evening and night. 

Gwangan Bridge was like the beating heart of this city, connecting it all and keeping the system running that otherwise would have seized to exist. 

You’d be able to get rid of them there.

But first of all, you’d have to pass through the gates. 

You could already see the traffic jam that was forming at the tollbooth. As per usual the lanes with the sign Telepass were running smoothly. You chose the one on the far left which was empty and pushed down the accelerator even further. The automatic system that scans the telepass in your boss’ car wouldn’t be fast enough. You would have to slow down considerably. And that wasn’t happening. So there was only one option left. 

“Hold on tight.” 

“Oh f*ck.” Hoseok looked at you, his eyes wide in disbelief as your car rammed the gate which burst into a million little pieces on the window of your car. “Woman are you crazy?”

“Maybe.” 

The police was still behind you, but your car was faster, streamlined and nimbler. You used the traffic to get rid of them, overtaking cars at a rapid pace while switching from one lane to the other effortlessly. All the hours spent with Hyungwon in one of your father’s Mercedes were apparently finally paying off because the police cars in your rearview mirror were getting smaller and smaller. When you took the exit to Haeundae in a risky last minute maneuver there were gone for good.

You slowed down the car and lined up into the regular traffic as if nothing ever happened. At a red light you stopped and waited, just like everybody else. Luckily between the Bently to your right and the Mercedes to your left, your car was a lot less noticeable than before. 

“Nice.” Hoseok finally let go of the handle above his head. He stretched his fingers and you chuckled as you saw that his knuckles had turned white. Such a crybaby. “So Hyungwon didn’t give you lessons back then, huh?”

 “When you asked he didn’t anymore.” You shrugged and drove off as the lights turned green again, staying low-key and following the natural flow of the traffic. You could still feel the adrenaline rushing through your veins. It made your heart beat faster while you started to feel a sense of euphoria about outsmarting the police. 

You could have killed the both of you with this heist but apparently your weird sense of pride didn’t pay any mind to that simple fact. You were on a high that you haven’t felt in… well… in two years. Even since you’d stopped being part of the Clan this sort of excitement had left your life completely. You’d only lived in constant fear. And in constant pain. But now… now you felt alive. Ecstatic even. You noticed that your giggling didn’t stop but that your hands started to shake so you gripped the steering wheel tighter and cleared your throat.

_ Stop acting like a crazy b*tch. Just calm down. _

“So,” Hoseok said after a little while of silence. “Who are you sleeping with to get a car that is worth over 100 billion won?”

The giggle died in your throat. And so did your excitement. The only thing you were left with was this bitter numbness that was taking a hold of you. 

“You are such an a**hole” you spat out. You weren’t a gold digger. You’d never been that kind of woman. Otherwise you’d never fought your own family in order to be with a guy who didn’t even knew who his parents were. 

“Why?” He shrugged. “Just because I go for the obvious explanation?”

You were still trembling but this time with anger. You had risked it all to save him and this is how he chose to repay your kindness? By throwing accusations your way that were so hurtful because they showcased how little the man you’d loved so dearly before apparently knew you. “You ungrateful son of a-”

You stopped when suddenly the speaker phone in Changkyun’s car lit up the car’s display, letting you know that you had an incoming call. Sh*t. You’d totally forgotten that, as his secretary, your phone was as much connected to this Maserati as Changkyun’s own. 

You looked at the name on the display. This wasn’t exactly a call that you could just ignore. 

Hoseok frowned. “Who is that?”

“That’s my boss. So shut up.” You reached out your hand towards the display in the center console and pressed accept. 

“Y/F/N?!” Changkyun’s voice suddenly filled the car. He sounded very worried and you could feel guilt washing over you. “Are you alright?”

“Hey Changkyun.” You took a left at the intersection and entered one of the lesser expensive parts of Haeundae that was further away from the beach and plastered with apartment buildings. “Yeah, I’m alright. Sorry to have worried you.”

“Thank God. You really scared me, you know?” Changkyun let out a relieved sigh and you smiled a little. You could picture him walking up and down in his office, his phone pressed to his ear while he tried to look all calm and composed while he really wasn’t. “Were you able to take care of what you needed to do?”

“Kind of. But it’ll take some time to wrap it up completely.”  You eyed the injured Hoseok from the corner of your eye who was staring at the display in disapproval. You’d need to take a look at his wounds and possibly mend them again judging by the red stains that were forming on his bandages. Also you’d need to buy some clothes and food for him. “I’m afraid I won’t be able to get back to work for the rest of the day.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s fine.” You’ve been with Changkyun long enough to know that his tone meant that it wasn’t really fine, but that he would settle with it for now. “But are you really alright? You sound… agitated.”

_ Yeah. And who’s fault is that?  _ “Sorry. I am just really stressed out. That’s all.” 

“Alright. Is there anything I can do for you?” 

You paused for a while. Could you really trust Changkyun enough to ask for his help? He’s been your boss for the past two years. And over the past few months he’d even become your friend. Also he was the only person with enough money and resources to pull this off unnoticed. So you really had no choice but to have faith in him. 

“Actually, there is.” You paused for a little bit. God, this was a lot harder than you thought it’d be. “But I need you to not ask any questions and to just do as I say.”

“Anything for you.” Changkyun said, without hesitating for even a second.

You spared Hoseok another look, assessing what you’d need to help him. “I need you to send me some morphine, disinfectant, bandages, needles and stitch.”

Silence fell across the car. The only sounds that were audible were the subtle purring of the engine and the clicking of the indicator as you set it up to the right to drive into the underground parking garage that was attached to your apartment complex. You really hoped that he would agree. After years of working for him and sometimes even doing his dirty work like kicking out his last night hook-ups or making documents disappear to get the upper hand in negotiations you really hoped that he would return the favour.  

Changkyun let out a drawn-out sigh. “Y/F/N - What have you gotten yourself into?”

You parked the car at the very end of the garage. “Can or can you not do this for me?”

Changkyun stayed silent for what seemed like an eternity. Then he finally responded. “Of course. I’ll send somebody trustworthy over to your place.”

“Thank you, Changkyun. I really owe you one.” Thank God that he was willing to help you. Otherwise you’d be in a lot of trouble. Well… in a lot more that you already were in. “Oh and… your car needs a new licence plate.”

“You definitely do.” You could hear Changkyun curse under his breath. “I’ll ask Wooki to pick up the car and change the license plate. Keep the car hidden until then.” There was a short pause, before Changkyun chuckled a little. “But you know, I’ll consider that dinner we talked about earlier as sufficient payb-”

Suddenly his voice was gone. The engine was still running, so what the hell was going on. You looked at the display in confusion just to see Hoseok’s hand falling back down into his lap. 

He’d just cut off your boss. In the middle of the conversation. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Hoseok snarled. “I couldn’t keep listening to that idiot.”

“He isn’t an idiot. And he’s actually saving your life with all this. So show some gratitude.”

Hoseok turned his head towards you, your eyes staring straight into yours. “Why should I when he’s sleeping with my woman?”

“I am not sleeping with him,” you answered without a second thought but then you realized that you didn’t have any obligation to answer him. Even if you were sleeping with Changkyun, it was none of his goddamn business. “And I am not your woman either. I left you. Did you already forget that?”

“Not for a single second.” His intense stare made you shift in your seat in discomfort. You turned off the engine of the car and reached for the door handle to get out. You froze in place when suddenly Hoseok’s thumb was brushing over the side of your neck. You felt like your world was going up in flames just by this simple touch and you pushed his hand away as quickly as you possibly could.

“You got your tattoo erased,” he mumbled. Was your mind playing tricks on you or did he really sound devastated? His voice was too soft for you to actually tell. 

You didn’t answer him. Instead you got out of the car. Nobody was in the parking garage. Good. You walked around the hood and opened the door to the passenger seat. You reached out your hand to help Hoseok up. He looked at it for a little while before finally taking it. This time when he slung his arm around your shoulder you didn’t sway on your feet. This time you were ready for the impact. 

You kept silent as you walked him to the elevator. You had to wait for it to arrive for a little while but thankfully when the doors opened the elevator was empty. You stepped inside and pressed the button for the 61st floor. The doors closed and the elevator started moving. 

There was still silence between you. Only the soft music of the elevator was playing in the background when you stood right next to his side, keeping him on his feet while desperately trying to ignore that aching heart in your chest that craved for more than this bitter coldness that you had felt ever since you’d left him. 

The doors of the elevator opened and you stepped out into the hallway with him. The apartment complex was fairly new so the corridor was nice and clean but oddly plain with it’s white walls and the black, shiney floor. You hurriedly walked over to your apartment door and put in the code that you had never changed. 

0103.

You stepped into the small one-room apartment that you called your home. Usually you would have taken off your shoes but they were still in the leg room of Changkyun’s car. You walked in with Hoseok and led him past the kitchen unit and the small table for two. You passed the doors of your built-in closet and the door to your small bathroom. You could feel the heat rising to your cheeks again as you realized that you didn’t have a sofa and there was only one queen-sized bed for the two of you to share. It would only be for one night. Then you’d kick him out. You definitely would.

You helped Hoseok to lie down on the bed and quickly went to the kitchen unit just to get away from him. 

Was your AC not working? Suddenly your otherwise cosy apartment felt stuffy and way too hot. 

You filled a glass with water and walked over to Hoseok. He sat up a little and took the glass out off your hand before drinking. The first sip he took was careful, as if he was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to keep it down but then he suddenly drank it in big gulps as if he’d been dehydrated. Once he had emptied his glass you got up and filled it one more time then you sat down on the side of the bed. Enough with avoiding the elephant in the room.  

“Wonho,” you said carefully. Hoseok stopped drinking and looked at you. “Why does my brother want you dead?”

Hoseok huffed. “That’s none of your business.”

“It obviously is, considering the fact that you are lying in my bed, all sliced up like friggin’ sashimi.” You made a gesture that was pointing at all of the wounds that had been inflicted upon him by Jooheon, your brother’s most loyal attack dog. “So what the hell did you do?”

“I didn’t do shit.” Hoseok put the glass on your white bedside table with a loud thud. The water inside splashed out. “And it’s not your brother who wants me dead.”

“Yeah sure.” You clicked your tongue. “You need to have done something bad for my brother to send Jooheon after you. So you better-”

Hoseok growled, making you stop your verbal assault. “Hyunwoo didn’t send Jooheon after me.” He seemed angered by your assumption that it had been your brother that had sent Jooheon after Hoseok to have him tortured and left to die like an animal.

“What? That doesn’t make any sense.” You shook your head in confusion. No, Hoseok was playing mind games with you. Nobody but your brother had power over Jooheon. He listened to nobody, only loyal to his original owner. “But then why…?”

Hoseok’s expression suddenly softened. “Y/N-” The tone of his voice had changed rapidly. From aggressive and harsh to understanding and almost comforting. There was that careful undertone that you’d only heard from him once in your life  and that had been the day your monster of a father had finally passed away.  

“No.” You shook your head and you got up from the bed, taking Hoseok’s water glass to refill it even though it wasn’t empty, as you just kept on rambling. Your brain was already putting together the dark puzzle pieces that Hoseok was throwing your way. But you were in denial as you turned on the water purifier to refill his glass. “You must have wronged Hyunwoo. You must have done something to piss him off and now-”

“He’s dead.”

You looked at Hoseok, your eyes widened with shock. “What?”

Hoseok looked you straight in the eye. “Hyunwoo. Your brother. He’s dead.” 

You didn’t even notice that the glass that you’ve been holding slipped out of your hands and fell on the ground, bursting into a million little pieces. 

“And Jooheon is the new head of The Clan.”

 


End file.
